Ok so, interested to see what people's opinions are, is there much in it between the two? Anyone out there who has owned or driven the two with a good knowledge of both?

The E39 M5 seems to be very highly regarded, despite never owning or driving one it's definitely a car I'd buy if the right one came up, as it seems to tick a lot of boxes. I think it's really aged well, is considered to be very well made and still looks great today.

The E90 M3 seems to be very highly regarded with the press, mostly for the S65 engine which by all accounts is brilliant, however one thing that comes to light in a lot of the reviews is that it's a rather heavy car, perhaps too heavy to really be considered in the same kind of fun bracket as the E30/E36 and E46 models, it almost feels like it's nearing the sporty touring car market rather than the tail happy nimble M3's of the past.

Which is why I'm comparing the two. The E39 M5 and pretty much every M5 would be considered a sporty cruiser / touring. So if the E90 M3 isn't in the same bracket as the M3's of past, it brings it close to the same bracket as the E39 M5.


According to Wiki - maybe unreliable -

The E39 M5 kerb weight is 1,826KG
The E90 M3 kerb weight is 1,580KG however the convertible is 1,810KG, so pretty much identical to the M5

How does the performance compare?? I understand the M3 will corner better and be faster around a track but in the real World, is there much in it. Traffic light warriors, would you fancy your chances in an E39 M5 against a manual E90 M3, let's not compare DCT models as this is just a giant leap in technology, so manual only for argument purposes.

How do the engines compare, does the S62 V8 in the E39 M5 have ANY advantages over the S65 V8 in the M3, or is it simply better in every way. Is there more torque in the S62?

Just curious.